NASA Mars Helicopter Ingenuity Went on a Wild Ride During Its Sixth Flight Due to Navigation Error

<div></div> <p>A navigation timing error sent NASA’s little Mars helicopter on a wild, lurching ride, its first major problem since it took to the Martian skies last month.</p> <p>The experimental helicopter, named Ingenuity, managed to land safely, officials at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory reported Thursday.</p> <p>The trouble cropped up about a minute into the helicopter’s sixth test flight last Saturday at an altitude of 33 feet (10 meters). One of the numerous pictures taken by an on-board camera did not register in the navigation system, throwing the entire timing sequence off and confusing the craft about its location.</p> <p><a href="https://gadgets.ndtv.com/tags/ingeuity" target="_self" rel="noopener">Ingenuity</a> began tilting back and forth as much as 20 degrees and suffered power consumption spikes, according to Havard Grip, the helicopter’s chief pilot.</p> <p>A built-in system to provide extra margin for stability “came to the rescue,” he wrote in an online status update. The helicopter landed within 16 feet (5 meters) of its intended touchdown site.</p> <p>Ingenuity became <a href="https://gadgets.ndtv.com/science/news/nasa-ingenuity-helicopter-mars-flight-successful-red-planet-mission-2417176" target="_self" rel="noopener">the first aircraft</a> to make a powered flight on another planet in April, two months after landing on <a href="https://gadgets.ndtv.com/tags/mars" target="_self" rel="noopener">Mars</a> with <a href="https://gadgets.ndtv.com/tags/nasa" target="_self" rel="noopener">NASA’s</a> rover <a href="https://gadgets.ndtv.com/tags/perseverance" target="_self" rel="noopener">Perseverance</a>.</p> <p>The 4-pound (1.8-kilogram) helicopter aced its first five flights, each one more challenging than before. NASA was so impressed by the $85 million (roughly Rs. 620 crores) tech demo that it extended its mission by at least a month.</p> <p>Saturday’s troubled flight was the first for this bonus period. Engineers have spent the past several days addressing the problem.</p> <hr> <div> <em>It’s Google I/O time this week on <a href="https://gadgets.ndtv.com/tags/orbital">Orbital</a>, the Gadgets 360 podcast, as we discuss Android 12, Wear OS, and more. Later (starting at 27:29), we jump over to Army of the Dead, Zack Snyder’s Netflix zombie heist movie. Orbital is available on <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/in/podcast/orbital-gadgets-360-podcast/id1121036073" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Apple Podcasts</a>, <a href="https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9jZG4uZ2FkZ2V0czM2MC5jb20vY29udGVudC9kYXRhL3htbC9vcmJpdGFsLnhtbA" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Google Podcasts</a>, <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/1TQIHsTESxrsHleJVhUKcr" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Spotify</a>, <a href="https://music.amazon.in/podcasts/e3a8ca64-3005-4427-a89e-b3e8ec828c3b/Orbital" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Amazon Music</a> and wherever you get your podcasts.</em> </div> <p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://patabook.com/technology/2021/05/29/nasa-mars-helicopter-ingenuity-went-on-a-wild-ride-during-its-sixth-flight-due-to-navigation-error/">NASA Mars Helicopter Ingenuity Went on a Wild Ride During Its Sixth Flight Due to Navigation Error</a> appeared first on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://patabook.com/technology">Patabook Technology</a>.</p>

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